1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to the field of refreshable tactile displays. More specifically, the present invention relates to an improved refreshable Braille display for use by the visually impaired.
2. Description of Related Art
Braille is the method that visually impaired individuals use to read and write. It consists of letters, numbers, and symbols represented as distinct patterns of dots. A refreshable Braille display is a device that is capable of refreshing or changing a pattern of Braille dots as the user reads each line from the display. Generally, such a display utilizes only one line of characters that can constantly change. Most current refreshable Braille displays use 20, 40 or 80 characters, or cells, of Braille for the line of text.
Currently available refreshable Braille displays generally use a piezoelectric (PZT) reed to actuate the dots using an electric field. While mechanically effective, this method of actuation is very expensive, has a high rate of scrapped material, and needs a significant amount of tedious hand assembly and wiring, resulting in substantial manufacturing costs. The cost of Braille displays are generally proportional to the number of cells of 8 dots that they contain. The prices of displays range anywhere from 1,600 dollars for a 20 cell display, to 7,000 dollars for a full 80 cell display. These steep costs have prevented many visually impaired individuals from having access to such displays.
As such, there exists a significant need for an improved refreshable Braille display that is constructed in a way which provides a cost-effective actuation method and greatly reduces the costs and complexity of manufacture.